Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

joyleen cowin — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 22:59:42 GMT

I too started bead weaving three years ago at the age of 67 , never having done anything artistic in my life I discovered I could design and create amazing Jewellry which is now owned by women around the world. Where did this come from? I don't know all I know is I love it , like fellow bead weavers I find it so relaxing , so therapeutic and my favorite pieces are the ones that take the longest to do .a friend gave me a book by Lynda S.Musante teaching Improvisational beadwork and wow is this a great way to do individual pieces of art Jewellry.

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

ladynorth — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 20:28:05 GMT

When I let the beads tinkle and sparkle and run like a small river through my fingers, it is like I am playing with a liquid rainbow lightfall.. I cheerfully go into 'bead thrall' and then of course I lose track of time and my seedbeading schedule goes out the window.

I have even been known to bead in the car (as a PASSENGER) with one of those plastic child lapdesks (michaels) that wedges perfectly between me and the car door Its raised edges along with a piece of ultasude on the surface helps keep those rolling beads in check.Going round corners is not a problem as long as you not trying to thread your needle at that time.(just sayin...lol) !

How true to it's root, that simple bead is, it started out and continues to be a prayer (bede holy) either to the Divine, the Muse for Creativity or a simple request to keep cats, kids, husband, or invisible bead demons from upsetting your work! ( I have at least one bead demon episode per project, you know the type, the kind that flip your work and scatter everything all over!) I have learned the nylon stockng tied very tightly over the end of a vaccuum hose trick and itsn't it intereting what else it picks up besides those pesky beads? (nuff said)

To me, bead thrall is similar to a meditative practice: like others have said, we can lose ourselves and our troubles with just a simple space, a comfy chair, decent lighting and a lightfall of scattered beads on our tray and our current project. Now where did I put my ziploc baggie with my square stitch project in it?

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

coonbill6 — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 16:25:20 GMT

I also agree. I don't know what it is about it, and I am certainly a frustrated beginner with seed beads, but I am determined to find a way to get my fingers to work right and complete a weaving project. I too, am not living the life I worked for; I suddenly became disabled with a form of MS, I lost everything I worked for besides my career and my husband left me. I am now alone with my beads and creativity. I have done much with the larger beads, but I am part Native American and have bought many pieces in the past at PowWows; suddenly "boing!!!!" do I have a brain? I can do that and I am. I love my seed beads and am glad to hear that I am not the only one in this position. I will overcome and then start to sell my Native inspired creations myself. Love to all of you.

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

kimwipe — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 23:12:30 GMT

I agree with MyasKoff, it has been for me a life saver. I am presently taking care of my 100 yr. old mother and my disabled husband, so my days never end and i am confined to my home with them. When i get to sit at my work station and pick up my seed beads i am transformed! I am an artist, a creator, and i am lost in my own world with my beads! The satisfacion of completing a project and the feel of the beads, the feel woven like cloth, is a touch i love. I can forget the real world and live in a colorful world where i can decided the colors, the shapes, the pattern what a wonderful feeling of fullfillment. I taught myself how to bead the different stitches, from square to St. Petersburg stitch and continue to learn everday. I am blessed!

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

kimwipe — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 23:11:45 GMT

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

beadbiddy — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 22:27:01 GMT

For decades my job was graphic design for books, magazines etc. My work became increasingly computerized, therefore less concrete / more "virtual" -- and though I continued to love what I did for a living, I longed to get back to using my hands as well as my eyes and mind in creating beauty and functionality. When I discovered seed-bead weaving, it was as though I found a way to bring those onscreen pixels of color and design to life in my hands! Like many of the others who commented on this blog question, I find working with seed beads to be meditative, centering, spiritual. And I love making something useful and beautiful to share with friends.

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

Debbie@304 — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 20:31:21 GMT

Awesome. It's great to find out how much other people understand about this obsession we have with seed beads. I couldn't have said it better myself.

When I'm beading the rest of the world carries on and does its thing whilet my little world is happy and serene but at the same time exciting and challenging. My designs don't always look as gorgeous in reality as they did in my mind but they open the way for more and better ones.

I love the comment from Philonese Simmons about the chant. I think we all do that without realizing it. No wonder beading has such a calming effect.

After crocheting with beads for over 40 years I suddenly discovered a whole new way to express myself and explore new techniques when I picked up my first beading magazine. The possibilities are endless!

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

Philonese Simmons — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 17:20:10 GMT

I love making creations with seed beads because it is like painting with beads. And I agree it can be very spiritual and like meditation. I realized this when I first started bead weaving doing peyote and I found myself saying pick up gold go thru black, over and over and realized it's like chanting.

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

myaskoff — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 15:47:33 GMT

I was leading a wonderful life, my children were grown, my beautiful grandchildren brought unspeakable joy, I was busy as a professional fine art photographer. Then, at age 60, I had a knee replacement that was botched and was left in permanent excruciating pain and an inability to walk. My life as I knew it, as I had expected it to continue to be, was immediately over. But . . . working with seed beads has fed me spiritually, physically, emotionally and mentally. My creative need to work with fine detail to create works that evoke emotions in the viewer is being fed with each tiny bead I slide onto a needle. It is soothing to be creating and I find I forget what I can’t do and concentrate on what I can. Also, this site has been a God send with its hints, instructions, patterns and wonderful examples of the work others are doing. I am just a beginner, learning a whole new set of skills. There is something about tiny beads that draws me into focus on each piece, praying while I work for whomever will own it someday, Hours can drift by where I can almost forget the pain. I can’t run and play with my grandchildren like I had dreamed, but they’ve learned to love me despite my limitations. I work with a wide variety of beads, but it is only with seed beads that I find the sense of creative fulfillment, spiritual connection, mental focus and emotional satisfaction. I don’t know why. But it is comforting to know there are others out there like me who find similar satisfaction. So many folks say things like, “I’d go nuts working with those tiny things.” Or, “It takes so long to finish one small project,” as if bigger is necessarily better. I feel a connection back through generations of (mostly) women from all over the world who have worked with seed beads. I genuinely believe it is too pervasive to be anything less than a human need to work with beads. Blessings to all of you out there who know what I’m talking about!

re: Five Reasons to Love Seed Bead Patterns

linda15419 — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 14:54:41 GMT

Why do we love seed bead patterns so much? Because the possibilities are endless and limited only by one's imagination -- and maybe time. The hours fly when I'm working on a seed bead project. I love the color and finish combinations not to mention the restorative, calming, and yes, healing effects that seed beads moving along needle and thread create. And speaking of "thread", its type and color influence the finished look and feel of the piece, too. And there are so many embellishment options, such as crystals or silk cords and ribbons, to enhance seed bead patterns. Just thinking about seed beads makes me want to drop my "to do" list for today to work instead on my current seed bead and bugle bead necklace (with Swarovski crystals!) that needs less than an hour to finish! Sigh. Reality wins out. But soon . . .